Tuesday 30 July 2013

Top Ten Tuesday (#3): Favourite Beginnings/Endings in Books


Top Ten Tuesday this week is about favourite beginnings/endings in books.

I couldn't decide which one I wanted to do: endings or beginnings. So instead I did 2 lists, but only Top5s, because otherwise the post this week would have been looong, and no one wouldn't want to read it. So here we go! 


Top 5 Beginnings:

1. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

"Late in the winter of my seventeenth year, my mother decided I was depressed, presumably because I rarely left the house, spent quite a lot of time in bed, read the same book over and over, ate infrequently, and devoted quite a bit of time of mu abundant free time to thinking about death. Whenever you read a cancer booklet or website or whatever, they always list depression among the side effects of cancer. But, in fact, depression is not a side effect of cancer. Depression is the side effect of dying. (Cancer is also a side effect of dying.)"

2. Wither by Lauren DeStefano

"I wait. They keep us in the dark for so long that we lose sense of our eyelids. We sleep huddled together like rats, staring out, and dream of our bodies swaying. I know one of the girls reaches a wall. She begins pound and scream - there's a metal in the sound - but none of us help her. We've gone too long without speaking, and all we do is bury ourselves into the dark. The doors open."

3. Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

"After a year of slavery in the Salt Mines of Endovier, Celaena Sardothien was accustomed to being escorted everywhere in shackles and at sword-point. Most of the thousands of slaves in Endovier receives a similar treatment - though an extra half-dozed guards always walked Celaena to and from the mines. That was expected by Adarlan's most notorious assassin. What she did not usually expect, however, was a hooded man in black at her side - as there was now."

4.  A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin

"We should start back, Gared urged as the woods began to grow dark around them. "The wildlings are dead." "Do the dead frighten you?" Ser Waymar Royce asked with just the hint of a smile. Gared did not rise to the bait. He was an old man, past fifty, and he had seen the lordlings come and go. "Dead is dead," he said. "We have no business with the dead." "Are they dead?" Royce asked softly. 


"Far out in the uncharted backwaters of the unfashionable end of the Western Spiral arm of the Galaxy lies a small unregarded yellow sun. Orbiting this at a distance of roughly ninety-eighty million miles is an utterly insignificant little blue-green planet whose ape-descended life forms are so amazingly primitive that they still think digital watches are a pretty neat idea."

Top 5 Endings:

1. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

"What else? She is so beautiful. You don't get tired of looking at her. You never worry if she is smarter than you: You know she is. She is funny without ever being mean. I love her. I'm so lucky to love her, Van Houten. You don't get to choose if you get hurt in this world, old man, but you do have some say in who hurts you. I like my choices. I hope she hers. I do, Augustus. I do."


"Harry kept smiling and waving, even though it was like a little bereavement, watching his son glide away from him... The last trace of steam evaporated in the autumn air. The train rounded around a corner. Harry's hand was still raised in farewell. "He'll be all right," murmured Ginny. As Harry looked at her, he lowered his hand absentmindedly and touched the lighting scar on his forehead. "I know he will." The scar had not pained Harry for nineteen years. All was well."

3. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

""Katniss," Gale says softly. I recognize that voice. It's the same one he uses to approach wounded animals before he delivers a deathblow. I instinctively raise my hand to block his words but he catches it and holds on tightly. "Don't," I whisper. But Gale is not one to keep secrets from me. "Katniss, there is no District Twelve."

4. The Maze Runner by James Dashner

"The subjects will eventually recall and understand the purpose of the hard things we have done and plan to do them. The mission of WICKED is to serve and preserve humanity, no matter the cost. We are, indeed, "good". Please respond with your own reactions. The subjects will be allowed one full night's sleep before  Stage 2 implementation. At this time, let's allow ourselves to feel hopeful. Group B's trial results were almost extraordinary. I need time to process the data, but we can touch on it in the morning. Until tomorrow, then."

5. Across the Universe by Beth Revis

"He grabs my arm, but I shake it loose. I'm not ready for that. But... if my life on Earth must end, let it end with a promise. Let it end with hope. I wrap my pinkie around his. He squeezes my finger, and this world doesn't feel so cold anymore. "Will you stay with me?" I whisper. "Always."

What about your favourite beginnings and endings in books?

38 comments:

  1. Great picks! I loved AtU ending as well. So many good ones you listed. <3
    Love that you included quotes as well :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I just wanted to read all of these agains as I listed these. There really isn't anything so great as reading! Thanks for stopping by. :)

      Delete
  2. Argh before I made the list I thought I should put 'Wither' on it and then I totally forgot! 'Throne of Glass' starts awesome too which I forgot haha. I just remember loving it overall. Great list :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I also forgot plenty of books which I would have loved to include. :) Well, maybe next time then! Thanks for stopping by.

      Delete
  3. The Fault in Our Stars absolutely deserves to be on both halves of your list. John Green is fantastic with witty, hooking openings, and in this case heartbreaking endings, and I loved re-reading both of them here on your blog. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. John Green is an incredible writer. :) I'm dying to read Looking for Alaska and Abundances of Katherine from him! I have heard such good things about them. And, you are welcome! I hope you enjoyed them as much I did.

      Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  4. I need to read Catching Fire again, especially before seeing the movie. I can't remember those closing lines.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Same here! And I think I also need to re-read and re-watch The Hunger Games before Catching Fire comes to the theaters. :) Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  5. Ooh, good point about Game of Thrones. Reading that one now and you're right, the beginning scene definitely hooked me! And every blog I see with Across the Universe makes me wonder why I didnt think to put it on my list, lol.

    Amanda @ i solemnly swear

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I remember I read A Game Thrones maybe in a few days - I was hooked right away. :) Across the Universe really has a great ending and beginning, even though I didn't add the beginning this time to my list.

      Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  6. Oh man I almost started crying again just reading that ending to TFIOS!!! So emotional!! Cool list... Most of the books I wanted to put on my list I don't own, so it was hard for me to come up with a lot of direct quotes. I like yours!!

    Thanks for stopping by My TTT

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It really is, isn't it. I remember reading it for the first time in a plane, and I was having such a hard time not to cry. :) Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  7. Ooooooooh boy. I gasped at the end of Catching Fire and bought Mockingjay that same day to find out what happens next. Ultimate cliffhanger.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Same here! I had to start read Mockingjay on the same day as well, I just had to know what was going to happen next. :)

      Thanks for commenting!

      Delete
  8. I really like the quotes from The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and Catching Fire! I have quotes from both of those series too. The ending to Across the Universe also sounds great! :) My TTT list: http://aliceinreaderland.com/2013/07/29/lines/

    Alice @ Alice in Readerland

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm glad I'm not the only one! Thanks for stopping by! :)

      Delete
  9. Throne of Glass was on my list as well--loved the beginning, it sucked me in right away! Loved Across the Universe. I still haven't read Game of Thrones, partly because I'm enjoying the TV show so much and I love not knowing what's going to happen! Great list! ~Pam

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I can immediately sense you have a good taste in books. ;) You should give A Game of Thrones a try. I think the books are better than the show, even though I'm a loyal fan to the show as well. :)

      Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  10. Great list! I haven't read The Fault in Our Stars, but just reading that one paragraph makes me want to run, pick it up, and start reading it. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You need to read it! It was just a perfect book: original, witty, but also made me cry and laugh out loud. It's definitely one of my favourites at the moment! :) Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  11. The ending of The Maze Runner was freaking awesome and totally unexpected!
    I loved the ending of HP & Catching Fire too. I need to read Wither soon after reading the first paragraph. It sounds awesome! Same goes for The Fault in Our Stars.
    Great list :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Also the book 2 of The Maze Runner trilogy ended pretty unexpectedly! Catching fire was definitely a similar one - I just tend to love books which have these insufferable cliffhangers. :D Thanks for stopping by. :)

      Delete
  12. I love how you actually put the quotes in there! I've read seven of these so jumping up and down happy to have discovered another reader with very similar tastes!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I just loved that I got an excuse to browse through my bookshelf and find some good quotes. :) I'm glad you liked my picks, I like them too quite a bit! ;) Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  13. I agree with your list! Although I prefer the beginning of The Fault in Our Stars to the ending.

    Thanks for stopping by Literary, etc! :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm not sure which one I prefer - the beginning was witty but the ending just so emotional. Thanks for stopping by at my blog! :)

      Delete
  14. I love your taste in books! You've got a little bit of all the genres I like. My favorite opening quote on your list is the Game of Thrones one :-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, and right back at you! :) A Game of Thrones is one of my favourite books! Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  15. Wither definitely has one of the best beginnings ever. It was dark, mysterious, and definitely caught my attention asap.
    Awesome list! :D

    My TTT

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That's exactly why I wanted to put it on my list. :) Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  16. Great list! I definitely have a few more for my TBR pile!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Well, I think I couldn't have chosen better then. :) I'm glad I found some new interesting sounding books! Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  17. Ahhh good call on Wither!! I forgot how intense that book was right from the start! I still need to finish off the series. I have the book, just haven't gotten to it! I didn't love Fever. I think that is what's holding me back!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I haven't gotten a chance to read Fever, even though I'm dying to know what happens. :( I hope you will like Sever even if you didn't like Fever. :) Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  18. I've been curious about The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. That first line just makes me curiouser! Great list. :D

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's really funny if you are into the dry, British humour kind of thing. :) And it's just so absurd that you aren't even sure what's really going on, I loved the book!

      Thanks for commenting. :)

      Delete
  19. Great list! I love the beginnings of Throne of Glass & The Hitchhiker's Guide, and I love the HP7 last lines :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, I really love those as well! Thanks for commenting. :)

      Delete

You can't see me, but I'm totally doing my happy dance as I read your comment!